Dawn McLachlan


This is the online home of Dawn McLachlan (aka Dawn Finch) - poet, author, allotmenteer, activist and community worker. This is where you’ll find all of my blogs about writing, community engagement, and my sustainable plot to plate ethos.

As well as being a published author I am passionate about community activism. I am based in a rural community in the north of Aberdeenshire, Scotland and I am passionate about sustainable rural regeneration.

As this website is my effort to bring a whole load of threads together there is quite a bit going on here. Allow me to explain…

In the Dawn McLachlan, author, pages you’ll find blogs about my work as a writer as well as my campaigns for the rights of authors, libraries, and national literacy. You can access these blogs from the thumbnails on this page.

I’m a member of the Huntly Writers group and together we support and promote local writers and writing. You can find out more about the Huntly Writers on our website. Many of us are part of the team responsible for running our community bookshop. You can read more about Orb’s Bookshop here.

In my Community Blogs pages you’ll find blogs about community activities and work towards rural regeneration in our wee town in NE Scotland. These articles celebrate the work of local people and local producers and (hopefully!) provide others with inspiration for their own community engagement.

In the Huntly Seed Library pages you’ll find blogs about growing veg and community gardening and the seed library curated by myself and Katrina Flad (of Frock and Wellies).

Follow my instagram for far too many photos of my cat, paintings, allotments, and of the stunning Scottish landscape

with love and a full plate… Dawn